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3.98 AVERAGE
3.98 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
dark
funny
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I have mixed feelings about this book. The first ~25% and last ~40% of this book are pretty amazing but sandwich about a third of a book of plotpoints that are either uninteresting or progress too quickly for me to form any attachment. Taking this book as a whole, it's really clear that it's just setup for the rest of the series. This is especially apparent with the (admittedly pretty hype) final chapter which no-doubt leads into the more interesting next book.
The first halfish of this book is deeply derivative. The first 20%(ish) of this book, especially thefighting practice scene SCREAMS the opening of Dune to me (honestly even down to the Mentat-esk mentor and the Bene Gesserit-esk chantry) though these are compelling ideas and there's enough difference to keel me engaged.
The same cannot be said for the next 35%(ish) of the book. This part of the book remains derivative. The next 15%(ish) apes thehomelessness part of Name of The Wind, though to much less effect with how quickly the years are skipped over. The Name of The Wind is meticulous in it's crafting of this same situation and really makes you feel for the MC but here everything goes by so fast that you cannot really bring yourself to care overly much.
The sin of skipping over plotlines repeats doubly in the following 10%(ish) of the book. Here we have a very genericgladiator style storyline that is glossed over so quickly that I literally could not care any less about the characters which are seemingly important outside of this book .
I understand that the glossing over of these two storylines might be needed in the larger scope the series, and that it is probably more true to the protagonist given his lifespan but it doesn't make them any less dull. The next part of the book quickly becomes more interesting and in particular the final 40% had me pretty hooked.
I love the framing of the book, which is clear from the first chapter. It gives a sort of dramatic irony to the proceedings and allows the MC to draw on this to increase the tension or clarify details based on things the MC could not have known at the time.
I also really enjoy much of the world-building. Though some are basically just Dune, they have little twists, like the Chantry's human supremacy and the Earth being god that keep things interesting. I especially like the idea ofthe Quiet and will be interesting to see where things progress as the series unfolds. I'm not too keen on the Ceilcin as of yet, they don't seem that interesting (other than in connection to the Quiet) , but hopefully this changes. I think my favourite part has to be that space-travel actually takes years and people are just put in stasis in meanwhile; it really adds to the vastness of space which is missing in a lot of sci-fi.
Overall, this a pretty compelling opening to a series, which, whilst somewhat derivative and suffering from some pacing issues around the midpoint, still manages to carve out a unique identity and put forward and interesting plot, especially in the final third.
The first halfish of this book is deeply derivative. The first 20%(ish) of this book, especially the
The same cannot be said for the next 35%(ish) of the book. This part of the book remains derivative. The next 15%(ish) apes the
The sin of skipping over plotlines repeats doubly in the following 10%(ish) of the book. Here we have a very generic
I understand that the glossing over of these two storylines might be needed in the larger scope the series, and that it is probably more true to the protagonist given his lifespan but it doesn't make them any less dull. The next part of the book quickly becomes more interesting and in particular the final 40% had me pretty hooked.
I love the framing of the book, which is clear from the first chapter. It gives a sort of dramatic irony to the proceedings and allows the MC to draw on this to increase the tension or clarify details based on things the MC could not have known at the time.
I also really enjoy much of the world-building. Though some are basically just Dune, they have little twists, like the Chantry's human supremacy and the Earth being god that keep things interesting. I especially like the idea of
Overall, this a pretty compelling opening to a series, which, whilst somewhat derivative and suffering from some pacing issues around the midpoint, still manages to carve out a unique identity and put forward and interesting plot, especially in the final third.
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
What a start to a sci-fi epic! Hadrian is a fascinating character that you love to hate and hate to love, as he is full of flaws but you inevitably find yourself on his side. Everyone around him pretty much sucks except his tutor, and when things go wrong with his family Hadrian is forced to grow up incredibly fast (no pun intended). I love the complexity of Hadrian, as he comes off as a bit of a Mary Sue at first but you realize there’s so much more to him that sets him apart from a lot of other fantasy/sci-fi protagonists. Really excited to start the sequel!
After hearing all the good reviews, I wanted to love this soooo bad. It just wasn't my cup of tea I guess. Everything felt so drawn out and over explained. I really struggled with the pacing and character engagement. which made this book feel disconnected. The story has a habit of lingering too long in the scenes which disrupted the narrative and made it difficult for me to maintain interest and feel a sense of progression.
adventurous
challenging
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Shakespearean, stunningly realized, especially for a first-time author. Very much reminiscent of the analogy of “spending your life up to that point” making your first work